David Moyes uses bizarre Wales example when defending his team selection in latest sign he’s feeling the strain at West Ham.
They say pressure can do funny things to a person and Moyes is certainly a man under pressure at West Ham.
The Hammers have been sleepwalking into a relegation battle all season and now find themselves in the bottom three with 19 games to go.
The performance in the 1-0 defeat against direct relegation rivals Wolves was so typical of West Ham’s season. An all too familiar tale of too little, too late.
A defensive, timid, risk averse approach saw the Hammers fall behind before they finally gave it a proper go for the last 10 minutes but to no avail.
Once again Moyes’ tactics and team selection were under the spotlight as West Ham plunged into the relegation zone on the same points as rock bottom Southampton and woeful Everton.
West Ham’s defence did not look comfortable all game with three left-footed players lining up alongside one another in Nayef Aguerd, Angelo Ogbonna and Aaron Cresswell.
It was the latter’s pathetic attempt at a clearance – and yet another in a long list of costly mistakes from Cresswell over the last year – which allowed Wolves to get the winner.
And it prompted a question to Moyes from the press post-match about his decision to play two left-footed centre-backs alongside oneanother.
Moyes used a bizarre Wales example when defending his team selection in the latest sign he’s feeling the strain at West Ham.
When defending his selection Moyes pointed to the fact Wales play with two left-footed centre-backs.
“No, it’s always a big consideration when you start two left-footers but it doesn’t seem a big consideration if you start two right-footers,” Moyes said when asked if he was apprehensive about starting two left-footed centre-backs together (Football.London).
“Wales have been playing with two left-footers at different times. We didn’t have a great deal of choice.”
Perhaps some years ago using Wales as a yardstick or example may have been a good thing. But in recent times, not so much.
The attempted justification from the West Ham boss is all the more baffling when you take one glance at Wales’ record.
The Dragons have won just two games in the last 14 months conceding on average nearly two goals per game.
Perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised that West Ham have only won four Premier League games all season and just 13 of their last 46 in the top flight across this season and last if Moyes is looking to the likes of Wales as an example.
Twenty defeats in the last 37 Premier League games is the most damning of all, though.
Even Wales aren’t that bad.
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